Julie Musil's Blog, page 9

In the Middle—the Small Publisher Debate

Friends, today a super star is visiting my blog! Seriously.

Super. Star.

The  Alex J. Cavanaugh is here to chat about small publishers. Alex, creator of the massively popular Insecure Writer's Support Group, is one of the most supportive, nicest guys ever.

Curious about small publishers? Me too. Take it away, Alex!

In the Middle – the Small Publisher Debate
You ever notice how things can get lost in the middle? Think there can be no middle ground? After all, the two sides sound so appealing:
The self-published author – keeps all the profits and doesn’t have to share. Gets to make all the choices and has total control. Can write outside the genre box and is free from deadlines.
The author with an agent and a book deal – work is validated. There’s no book costs and gets a royalty advance. Bookstore placement and marketing. Big reviews and often better sales.
Both sound great, right? So, what’s in the middle?
Signing directly with a (small) publisher.
You’ve probably heard a lot of good and bad things about that route. Let me list a few points for you, some based on experience and some on the experiences of other authors.
The Cons:
Small publishers don’t have huge marketing budgets. Some don’t have any.Your book sitting in a book store probably won’t happen. A lot are eBooks only.They are more likely to experience financial troubles.Often there’s no advance royalty. Overall royalties aren’t much.Sometimes covers are simple or involve stock images.The Pros:
Small publishers are more willing to take a chance on a new author or genre.Acceptance gets your foot in the door and garners some respect.You’re not a number – you’re a real person and sometimes family.You have some input in the process, including cover design.Often there is support past the initial release.The middle was my choice. Overall I’ve been very fortunate with my publisher. They took a chance on a complete unknown and continued to support my books months after their release. They kept me in the loop and the covers they’ve produced have been stunning. And while there was no advance for the first two books, I did get one on the third book, and overall royalties have far exceeded my expectations.
Is it the right choice for you? Only you can answer that question. There will be pros and cons either way. Everything in life has pros and cons though. Which ones matter most to you?
Thank you Julie for the opportunity!
Alex, thank you! Not only for this great post, but for all you do for writers. You're a bright light in this community, and we're so thankful for you.
I've heard many authors speak about the family atmosphere with small publishers. Friends, do you have any experience with small publishers? Have you queried them? Published with them? Please share! Any questions for Alex? Ask away!
(No fair, Alex! A shadowy photo??)
Alex J. Cavanaugh has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and works in web design and graphics. He is experienced in technical editing and worked with an adult literacy program for several years. A fan of all things science fiction, his interests range from books and movies to music and games. Online he is the Ninja Captain and founder of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. The author of Amazon bestsellers CassaStar, CassaFire, and CassaStorm, he lives in the Carolinas with his wife.
Website * Twitter * Goodreads * IWSG

Why Connect Charitable Giving to a Book Release? #IndieLife

Welcome to the February installment of IndieLife! Wanna join the group? Just sign up here.

When thinking ahead to the launch of my YA novel, The Boy Who Loved Fire, I felt uncomfortable with the me, me, me approach. Heck, when I got married and had children I didn’t even like the unwrapping gifts portions of my bridal and baby showers because the attention was focused solely on me.
An idea struck. I’d attach all the proceeds from the first two day’s worth of sales to two amazing charities: Grossman Burn Center (via Firefighters Quest for Burn Survivors) and Carousel Ranch (equestrian therapy for disabled children). My son is a burn victim who had been helped tremendously by the Grossman Burn Center. Carousel Ranch helps disabled kids near my home. Both charities hold special places in my heart.
Once the decision was made, I no longer cringed at the thought of telling people about my book. I wanted to tell as many people as possible so these amazing organizations could benefit.
If you’re thinking about connecting your book release to charitable giving, here are some suggestions to consider:Choose charities that connect to your book: When doing so, this can introduce readers to your book who may be going through similar issues. For instance, my main character falls in love with a burn victim. This burn victim had healed with the help of caring people at an equestrian therapy ranch. These story threads connect directly to the chosen charities.Choose charities that deserve exposure: Make sure the charities are real, and that they do great work. Unfortunately, there are plenty of scammers out there. If readers are buying your book in order to help a charity, they should feel confident that their money and efforts won’t be wasted.Have the print version ready to go: Not every reader is using an ereader. I didn’t want the charity to lose money simply because a giver only read print books. It was a lot of work to get the print book ready by release day, but at least I knew the charity wouldn’t lose donations because of lack of print.Ask the charity to help spread the word about your book: Most charities have built-in networks. The goal is to sell as many books as possible on the designated day in order to bring the most benefit to the organization. If the author and the charity work together to spread the word, both sides win.Charitable giving can expose new readers to your work: By choosing to be a giver with your book release, you may reap unexpected benefits. Perhaps new readers will give you a chance. This shouldn’t be the main reason why you choose to give. It’s merely a side benefit.Attaching book releases to charitable giving makes the buyer feel good. Yes, they’re buying a story they’ll hopefully enjoy, but they’re also helping others. It’s a great way to turn away from the me, me, me approach and turn toward the give, give, give approach.
Have you considered connecting a book release to charitable giving? If you decided to do this, what charities would you consider? Are they connected to your book’s theme? Please share!

Conquering Divided Attention-itis #IWSG

Happy February, Insecure Writers! I hope your 2014 is off to a great start. If you aren't yet a part of this wonderful group, click here and sign up. This month I'm so proud to be one of the co-hosts, along with M.L. Swift, Sheena-kay Graham, and Jamie Ayers.

What am I insecure about this month? Divided attention.

My YA novel, The Boy Who Loved Fire, was recently released into the big wide world. It's been a crazy, exciting ride, and I'm still in the infancy stage of publishing and promotion.

As I look ahead to the rest of 2014, I have plans and projects stacked up in my brain. Enough work to keep me out of trouble for a while! But way more important than that, I have a family—a supportive hubby and three teen sons who deserve my attention.

As busy writers, how can we manage our divided attention? I boil it down like this:

Family first—it sounds obvious, but sometimes we get lost in a zone and lose sight of what really matters. Spouses and kids should not feel like they're in line behind writing. If there's something I absolutely have to get done now, I let my family know I have work to do and I'll see a movie, have lunch, or watch the starry skies in an hour. They understand if they know I'm working now, but will turn my attention to them when promised.Prioritize the work—I have the attention span of a 10-year-old (SQUIRREL!), so it's important for me to focus on one task at a time. I usually work on the most pressing issues first. Then I take stock of what needs to be done and make a list of priorities. I sometimes plug tasks into my iCal, based on what needs to be done when. This keeps me organized and on point.Drop everything and … have fun—In order to write about life, we must live it. If something fun and unexpected comes up, I'll drop everything and go for it. The work can wait.
What's your opinion on managing divided attention? How do you juggle it all? If you have any tips, please share!

Book Release, Day 2! Buy a book, help a great cause

Friends, thanks SO much to all of you who bought The Boy Who Loved Fire yesterday. All proceeds from day one will be donated to the Grossman Burn Center. Click here to learn more about the amazing work they do for burn survivors.

It's day two! All of today's proceeds will be donated to Carousel Ranch, where they provide equestrian therapy for disabled children. Wanna be inspired? Click here and watch the slide show. You'll be glad you did. (Fun fact: I went to high school with the organization's executive director, Denise Tomey-Redmond)

In The Boy Who Loved Fire, Abigail—the love interest—is a burn victim. Part of her healing process takes place at an equestrian ranch that was loosely modeled after Carousel Ranch.

Again, here's the short description and buy links. I'm so grateful for your support!
Manny, a modern teen Scrooge, faces three ghosts as he outruns arson charges, falls for his fire victim, and battles for redemption.
AmazonBarnes and NobleAppleKoboSmashwordsPrint
If you buy a copy, I'd love it if you sent me a photo of you holding the book. I'd proudly post the photos here, on Pinterest, and on my author Facebook page. Please send your photos to julie at juliemusil dot com. I sincerely hope you enjoy the book, and again, thanks from the bottom of my heart. 
Have you ever heard of equestrian therapy for disabled children? Did you click on the link and watch photos of the amazing kids?

Book Release Day! Buy a book, help a great cause

Friends, it's book release day! I humbly offer my YA novel, The Boy Who Loved Fire. Yes, I'm excited. Yes, I'm nervous as heck. But most of all, I'm proud. I truly hope readers will love Manny's story.

This isn't an ordinary release day. All proceeds from today's sales will be donated to the Grossman Burn Center via Firefighters Quest for Burn Survivors. The burn center holds a special place in my heart, because they took excellent care of our son when he had third degree burns. Abigail, the love interest in The Boy Who Loved Fire, is also a burn victim. I drew on our personal experience when writing her character.

I sincerely hope you enjoy the book. If you buy a copy, I'd love it if you sent me a photo of you holding the book. I'd proudly post the photos here, on Pinterest, and on my author Facebook page. Please send your photos to julie at juliemusil dot com.

Here's the short description and buy links. Thanks so much for your support!
Manny, a modern teen Scrooge, faces three ghosts as he outruns arson charges, falls for his fire victim, and battles for redemption.
AmazonBarnes and NobleAppleKoboSmashwordsPrint
All of tomorrow's proceeds will be donated to Carousel Ranch, where they provide equestrian therapy for disabled kids. Check in again tomorrow, when I'll share details of why I chose this amazing charity for day two.

thank you*thank  you* thank you* thank you
If you've released a book, how did you handle release day? Were you nervous? Excited? Scared as heck? Any advice you can give a newbie?

How to Choose a Freelance Editor

Six days until the release of The Boy Who Loved Fire! All proceeds from the first day will be donated to the Grossman Burn Center. Proceeds from the second day will be donated to Carousel Ranch. More details to follow!

When I decided to self publish my YA novel, The Boy Who Loved Fire, I knew I'd hire a freelance editor. Yes, the book had been through rounds of editing. Yes, it was clean. But I knew it wasn't ready for people to plunk down hard-earned money for it.

Stay tuned until the end to see who I picked! (No scrolling…I can see you!)

How should we choose a freelance editor? Opinions may vary, but here's what I looked for:
Happy clients: I wanted to be sure the editor had a trail of happy writers. I put out feelers to other authors who had paid for professional editing. I asked for their honest opinions about the quality of work.Sample edits: Most editors offer a free sample edit, which I took advantage of. I thought of it as an audition. After receiving the samples back, I compared editing style and mood. Style and mood were unidentifiable things to capture, but once I read the samples, I knew for sure who I'd hire.Someone who "got" my story: I wanted an editor who got my genre, got my story, and cared about the outcome as much as I did. My editor was invested in the story.Knowledge: I'm an avid reader, as most of you are, and I can catch some details that need to be tweaked or corrected. But I'm not good enough to catch the all-encompassing story issues or nitty gritty details. That's not where my strengths lie. Or lay. See? That's what I mean.Balanced editing: I didn't want to pay someone to pump up my ego, nor did I want to pay someone to be mean. I looked for an honest editor who'd tell me the truth when my story was funky, and who'd also tell me when I'd done something right.Informative comments: My editor didn't just make a change or tell me what didn't work. She told me why. If a certain word seemed weak or out of place, she offered alternatives. It was my choice to make, but I appreciated the options.Reasonable response times: Some editors took a loooong time to respond to my inquiries, or never responded at all. That's not a good fit for me. I didn't expect a super fast turnaround with the edit, but I appreciated how quickly my editor did the work and how quickly she responded to my questions.So, who did I choose to edit my novel?

Drumroll please….

Bethany at A Little Red, Inc., who did a wonderful job for a fair price. She was truly my partner through the editing process. And the bonus of all bonuses? She's funny as heck. Their motto is "We're funny. We're tactful. And we're fast." True story.

The editing sisters, Bethany and Erynn, are offering a free 5-page edit to one lucky commenter! I'll choose a winner on January 26th.

Have you ever hired a freelance editor? What did you look for before making the choice? Any tips you can share?

(photo credit)

Writing lessons learned from REBELLIOUS HEART

I'm counting down to the release of The Boy Who Loved Fire on January 28th! You can mark it as Want To Read on Goodreads here. Please stay tuned to this blog and on my Facebook Author Page for updates :)

And now, on to the writing lessons I learned from Rebellious Heart. I'm a big fan of bestselling author Jody Hedlund's books, and I can honestly say this story was my fave. Danger, petticoats, and romance, oh my! Here's a brief description of the book from Jody's website:

In 1763 Massachusetts, Susanna Smith has grown up with everything she's ever wanted, except one thing: an education. Because she's a female, higher learning has been closed to her but her quick mind and quicker tongue never back down from a challenge. She's determined to put her status to good use, reaching out to the poor and deprived. And she knows when she marries well, she will be able to continue her work with the less fortunate.

Ben Ross grew up a farmer's son and has nothing to his name but his Harvard education. A poor country lawyer, he doesn't see how he'll be able to fulfill his promise to make his father proud of him. When family friends introduce him to the Smith family, he's drawn to quick-witted Susanna but knows her family expects her to marry well. When Susanna's decision to help an innocent woman no matter the cost crosses with Ben's growing disillusionment with their British rulers, the two find themselves bound together in what quickly becomes a very dangerous fight for justice.

And now the writing lessons I learned from this amazing inspirational romance (Alert! Read no further if you don't want to know any plot points!):

Opening scenes can do triple duty: In this case, 1) a man is found guilty of murder, 2) character reveal—Susanna shows compassion for the convicted man, and 3) introduces love interest, Benjamin Ross (Hedlund is great at introducing the love interest early). There's lots going in in the opening pages; no word is wasted.Layered conflict: this story takes place pre-revolutionary war. We have a murderer on the loose, British soldiers roaming the countryside looking for traitors, a love interest involved in the forbidden Caucus Club, and we have the temptation to break the law in order to help a poor, indentured servant girl. Layers and layers here, which keeps the reader on her toes.Character conflict from the start: Susanna is a well-bred lady from a prominent family. Benjamin Ross is the son of a farmer who sold land to pay for Ben's Harvard education. There's no way this couple can be together. Which leads me to…Bind the couple together: Susanna and Ben share a love of books. They also conspire to help an indentured servant. Even though they can't be "together," they're forced together by circumstances. It's organic because of who these characters are.Write in scenes: I've mentioned in previous posts that Hedlund is an expert at this, but it bears repeating. Scenes are not written as this happened, then this happened the next day, etc. Hedlund jumps ahead to the scene that matters. Any necessary details from the lapse in time are filled in.Use setting details to set the mood: Rebellious Heart takes place in a Massachusetts seaside village. It's warm and sunny during a lighter moment between Susanna and Ben. It grows gloomy and cold as the story tension mounts. Hedlund also uses wonderful analogies that refer to the sea, which further solidifies the story world.Fun fact: Rebellious Heart was based on the love story between John Adams—the first vice president and second president of the United States—and his wife Abigail. I adored this story before knowing that, and loved it even more once I learned that little nugget of truth. If you love love, and if you love historical novels, I'd highly recommend this book.
What do you think of these lessons learned? Do you use any of these devices when writing your own books? Anything you'd like to add? Please share!

Calm the Chatter in Your Head #IWSG

Welcome, Insecure Writer's Support Group friends! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. If you'd like to join this super supportive group, please clicky clicky here.

Also, I wanted to let everyone know that my YA novel, The Boy Who Loved Fire, releases on January 28th. Stay tuned here and on my Facebook Author Page for news!

Today we have a guest post from fellow blogger and author Tracey Barnes Priestly, who shares tips on how to quiet the negative chatter that battles for attention in our writer brains. Tracey's book, Duck Pond Epiphany, is on sale now.

Take it away, Tracey!

Show me someone free from negative thoughts and, pardon me for being so blunt, but we’ll both be looking at someone without a pulse! How do I know? Because as a therapist, I’ve worked with countless people struggling to move around and beyond the cacophony of "chatter" they live with. 
You know what I mean ... those pesky, negative messages that alternately whisper and scream inside of your head. Sadly, negative self-talk can feel as natural as breathing in and breathing out ... in a gasping, suffocating kind of way. And here’s the thing. No one is immune, including yours truly.
Admittedly, in the early days of my career as a writer, I managed my negative self-talk well enough. After all, I rationalized, a Q&A column for working parents wasn’t exactly writing. No, it was merely an extension of what I already did - teach people skills to improve the quality of their lives.
But then I decided to try my hand at writing fiction. Ha! I quickly discovered a flash mob of negativity living inside of my head. They were a loud, screaming, mass of criticism. One blared: “Write a novel? You? You’re not a real writer.” Or how about this? “Get real. You have no training for something so demanding.” And then there was this gem. “Ha! Even if you managed to write a novel, you’d never get it published.” The chatter was endless and, it was absolutely deafening. 
And so ... I had to put myself on my own couch, so to speak. I knew if I wanted to pursue my dream I needed to wrangle my chatter into submission. 
My first task? To remember that even though my negative messages felt like the absolute truth, they were not. No, all of that chatter was just little old me, giving voice to my insecurities, in a feeble, yet potentially powerful attempt to protect me from failure. How? If I allowed the chatter to be in charge, I would never risk writing a novel, which in turn, would spare me disappointment, hurt, failure, embarrassment, etc. (Please, feel free to fill in your personal favorite!) 
Next, I began the rewriting process. It went something like this:
Chatter:“Write a novel? You? You’re not a real writer.”Me: “Actually, I’ve managed to successfully communicate, in writing, for the last twenty years. Apparently, I write well enough by some standards.” 
Or ...Chatter: “Get real. You have no training for something so demanding.”Me: “Okay, I may have to learn some things along the way but I’m reasonably intelligent. I can do this.” 
Or:Chatter: “Ha! Even if you managed to write a novel, you’d never get it published.”Me: “I just want to experience writing in a different format. It’s far too soon to even begin to think about publishing!”
Did my flash mob go quietly into the night? Most of the time. But predictably, at different times throughout the process, they’d pop up. I’d wrangle them back into submission, put my head down, and continue on, determined not to let me stop myself. 

So please, the next time it gets noisy inside of your head, talk a deep breath, give the chatter some well thought out sass, and carry on. Your dream is waiting! 
Oy, the chatter in my head is constant! How about you, fellow writers? How do you calm the negative noise? Please share!

Tracey Barnes Priestley holds a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology and spent many years as a therapist before moving into the field of personal coaching. She currently specializes in working with both writers and performers. An award winning syndicated columnist for 14 years (Juggling Jobs and Kids), Tracey now writes and blogs about issues she, and countless others face in the second half of life. (www.thesecondhalfonline.com) As an educator and consultant, she has offered workshops, seminars, and trainings throughout her entire career.

An amateur singer and performer, Tracey finally earned a percentage of the box office when, inspired by her print column, she co-wrote, produced, and starred in a one act musical, “The Second Half: A Lively Look at Life after Fifty.” Married for 36 years, and the mother of three, Tracey lives among the redwoods of northern California with her recently retired husband and their loyal mutt, Bella von Doodle.

Cover Design 101: Interview with Cover Artist J. Allen Fielder

It's no secret that I'm in love with my cover for THE BOY WHO LOVED FIRE. When I decided to indie publish, I put feelers out there for a quality cover designer. Gae Polisner referred me to J. Allen Fielder. I'm so glad she did. Jeff is a pleasure to work with, and he creates a great product for a fair price.

I thought it would be fun and informative to take a peek into the world of cover design. Here's a Q and A with my cover designer, Jeff Fielder.

What makes a memorable cover stand out?
There isn't any one thing that makes a great cover, but there are many things first-time self-publishing authors do that can break a cover. A good cover tells a story, piques interest, and grabs the eye, but it shouldn't tell the whole story. You also don't want to mislead the reader. We've all been trained (whether we know it or not) that certain colors on the cover will give you a hint to what's inside. Take for example bright oranges, yellows, greens . . . probably a humorous book. Red? Thriller or military. Soft colors: Romantic. This isn't an always thing, but if you write a thriller and put soft colors and a couple almost kissing a la Nichols Sparks, you're probably going to miss your target audience.
Another common mistake is fonts (really, typefaces, but that's a discussion for another day). Too many authors grab a photo from Shutterstock, place it in Word, use clipart or some other whimsical or scripty font, and call it a day. Nothing says amateur like comic sans.
Look, I'm a graphic designer, and this is how I make my living, but the truth is, you CAN design your own cover, just like you can edit your own book. It CAN be done, but all too often the results are not what you want. Your book can only be born once. Your cover matters. Take the time, invest the money to get it perfect, and take pride in what you've done. Only you know what you want, so don't let your artist stop you from reaching your vision. A good designer will help you and guide you, but won't dictate their vision on your book.
What should authors consider when formulating a cover idea?
You have to be somewhat realistic about your vision. It would be lovely to have the budget to get custom photography, model releases, and hundreds of hours of graphic arts time (often billed hourly) to get Tatum Channing dressed as a clown riding a Mustang over a rainbow of fire, but unless you have deep deep pockets, you're probably going to be be looking at some sort of stock photography. That's just the reality of your budget. Can you take a cool picture of your neighbor kid for $50 and call it good? Absolutely. But those are rare special cases.
One thing I tell my clients is to share their ideas with me, but have an open mind. Typically when I get started on a project, I talk to my clients, get an idea for their vision, and then mock-up 5, 10, 15 concepts. Then I tell my clients to NOT settle. If we're not there, let's mock-up 15 more. Like I said before, your book can only be born once. Take the time to reach YOUR vision.
You may not know what you want until you see what you don't want. Don't be afraid to ask your artist to try something. Any artist worth a damn will mock-up what you've asked for, even if he or she doesn't believe in the concept. It's not our cover. It's yours.
Another tip to save you money is to do some of the background research yourself. I don't charge to hunt through stock photography to find an image, but some artists will. If they bill hourly and you send them on a wild goose chase to find a specific image, you're wasting money. Go on the stock photography sites and find some concepts yourself. Not only will this save you money, but you'll have more ownership in the final piece. You might also find other ideas along the way that you'd like to try.
What do you need from your clients to help you zero in on their vision?
Rule No. 1: Have an open mind.Rule No. 2: Know what you want.Rule No. 3: Have an open mind.
It sounds funny, but there's an old Dilbert cartoon I often refer to where the client asks him to build a prototype, he does, and when he brings it back they say, "That's not what we want at all." He asks what they want and they say, "I don't know. You're the expert." Every author out there has an idea for a cover when they're writing their book. At some point, you write a scene and you think, "Oh my God! That would make an AWESOME cover!" That's the point where you need to tell your artist what you want. Is it the right cover? Maybe not, but only you know for sure. However . . . don't get stuck there. Getting the perfect cover is like writing the perfect scene. You may rewrite 50 times before you get it just so. Your cover should get the same respect and treatment. 
How do you and the author know when you've created The One?
At some point, you just know. But let me give this advice: Once you have THE ONE, do a couple more. I LOVE THIS COVER! is great, but I always tell my clients to sleep on it, show it around to a few close friends, take some time to breathe and dream about it. Look at it until you're sick of it. And if you still love it, you've found the one. It doesn't hurt your book to wait a couple days and get feedback from people you trust.
I will tell you this. While not all artists are the same, I can make mock-ups of the same book for eternity. The only time I know we've found the right one is when the client is happy. Personally, I can tinker forever. I have sent mock-ups to clients even after they've said, "THAT'S THE ONE!" and changed their minds. Love is a fickle thing.
What is your biggest challenge with cover designs? Your greatest joy?
Biggest challenge? Clients who don't know what they want, or know what they want and won't budge. There's a fine line between demanding and unreasonable. Clients should be demanding (it's YOUR money!). But you have to be willing to bend or hear other ideas. Just like when your editor tells you to change a scene, if you're rigid and refuse to listen, your book will likely suffer for it. Some things just don't work, no matter how much you want them to. And some people aren't going to be honest with you. As a designer, I've created covers that I'm not proud of because at the end of the day, it's the client's money and the client's cover. As much as I can guide, I simply can't dictate.
Greatest joy? While I'd love to sound altruistic and say my greatest joy is a happy client, the truth is, my greatest joy is seeing my covers in print. I love being proud of my work. When I see a cover I love and I know I've worked hard and the client is happy and I can put that book on my shelf . . . there's nothing better professionally. Yeah, I'm as narcissistic as the next artist. Writers may say their greatest joy is connecting with a reader, but nothing—NOTHING—feels as good as seeing your book in print that first time. When I create art that can stand on its own . . . Yeah, it's an amazing feeling.
How much should an author expect to pay?
Designers charge either a flat fee or an hourly fee. Some may even charge a combination of the two. Like anything else, you pay for what you get. If you're on a really tight budget (defined as $200 or less), you might consider hiring a high school or college art student. But keep in mind, you're going to get what you pay for. You might get lucky and get a great artist who wows you, but that's not often. Most established cover designers have been doing this a long time and have a better understanding of imagery, typefaces, depth, and they know the rules for bleeds, resolution, and color space. They know how to make covers that work in print and in electronic for Kindle or as a small thumbnail for Amazon . . . there's a LOT to know. Personally, I try to price myself mid-range, because I know most authors are going to struggle to recoup their costs. I would recommend capping any cover project at about $300 in today's market. Don't let someone convince you you need to spend $1,500 on a cover because the chances of you making that back in the self-publishing world is very slim.
You also have to decide how much you want to do yourself, and how much you want to pay someone else to do for you. A good designer should be able to give you print, electronic, interior, and eBook versions of your cover and copy. Some artists ONLY do covers. Some only do interior layout, design, and pagination. I do both, and there are a lot like me. For a full book project, expect to pay between $400-$800. Anything more, and you have to ask yourself if you can make that back in royalties.
And before anyone says "I saw a Web site that says it can do covers for $50!" I'll say again, you get what you pay for. There are a lot of places that will sell you a pre-designed cover. And they'll sell that same cover to the next author. And the next author. And the next author. If you use stock photography, you will probably see that image on another cover someday. Nothing you can realistically do to prevent that. But do you really want a cover that is being sold to 100 other authors and the only difference is the title and author name?
What happens if my artist and I don't agree?
Some relationships don't work out. I have once been fired from a job. It sucks. After 27 revisions, we still couldn't find the author's vision. It was a failure mostly on my part, but the author had a clear vision and didn't know how to articulate it. We both got frustrated and finally decided to go a different route. This was early in my career, and I didn't charge a retainer. Even if I had, I probably would have refunded the money, but had it been all on the author, I might not have. Most designers will charge a small fee up front to make sure they don't do 20 hours of work and then the author takes off never to be heard from again. Likewise, authors need to protect themselves from unscrupulous designers. Don't pay everything up front. Agree to a retainer, pay a small fee to protect both parties, but just like hiring a fence contractor, don't pay the bill until the work is done. If your designer insists on you paying everything up front, find another designer. The short answer here is, don't be afraid to fire your designer. It's your book. It's your cover. If it's not perfect, don't settle. If that means you're out your retainer, find comfort in the fact that you're working toward something perfect, not something that'll just do.
Thanks so much, Jeff! *pets pretty cover*

Friends, what's your experience with covers? Have you ever picked up a book based on the cover alone? Have you set a book aside because you didn't connect with the cover? If you've published a book, how was your experience with the cover designer?

Are you the Tiger Woods of Publishing? Does it matter?

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I've blogged before about Hugh Howey, and how much I loved his story WOOL. But his novel isn't the only reason I've become a fangirl. I love his stories and his characters, for sure, but I adore his  perspective .

He wrote an article for indiereader.com, "The Best Days of My Life." Do yourself a favor and read the entire article. I guarantee you'll be inspired.

There was one section of the article that made me want to run around my house, holding a bath towel like a super hero's cape. Here's the part that spoke to me:

"If you are twelve, and reading this right now, know that I was twelve once, too. I was twelve, and I dreamed of being a writer. I filled composition books with stories, but I never finished them. Part of that was because there was no youth NaNoWriMo group showing me what was possible. And there was no KDP or Smashwords to give me the freedom to turn my stories into books. There was no easy outlet for my rampant imagination. Now there is, but it means ignoring those who say you shouldn't go for it.Remember that it's okay to write and publish just to make yourself happy, to make yourself fulfilled. There will be authors out there, readers, publishing experts, and booksellers who say that this outpouring of unprofessional drek is ruining the industry, which makes me wonder if these same people drive through neighborhoods yelling and screaming at people gardening in their back yards, shouting at them that, "You'll never be a farmer!" Or if they cruise past community basketball courts where men and women unwind with games of pickup and shout at them, "You'll never make it in the NBA!"There is a kid learning to dribble a basketball right now who will go on to play shirts-and-skins, lead their high school to a national championship, get drafted in the first round and make millions, and this is no reason for the rest of us to not go out and experience the thrill of a 3-pointer heaved up and swishing right through the net. There is some parent teaching a child how to grip a putter right now and take aim at a clown's mouth, and that kid will get a $50 million endorsement from Nike, and this is no reason not to go whack a bucket of balls after work. Implicit in the message that only some people should publish is the stance that all publishing is commercial, it's all about making money, about being a bestseller, a pro. But that's not the reason I do it. It isn't why I celebrate writing and encourage people to self-publish. I've been doing both for a long time. So if anyone tells you that you can't do it, that you shouldn't do it, that you'll never make a living at it, I urge you to agree with them. And then go do it anyway."Right? Do you want to run around your house wearing a bath towel like a super hero's cape?

If you're that writer who wins a slot on the New York Times bestseller list, we'll support you. And if you're that writer who relates to the golfer who hits a bucket of balls after work? We'll do the wave with each swing. Pinkie swear.

Have you read this article by Hugh Howey? What's your opinion? I'd love to know!